Archinect - News

Photos from the "Bigger Than a Breadbox" opening reception

2015-06-18T18:36:00-04:00

What is the role of installation in architecture? More importantly, how does a curator arrange an installation that is primarily concerned with the effects of installation? “Bigger Than a Breadbox," which held its public opening reception on June 17th, is partly the brainchild of BSA space, Archinect, and curators Aaron Willette and Rob Trumbour of Khôra LLC, who considered precisely how to arrange the space to best explore this concept. We asked curator Aaron Willette about his process and the inherent challenges in creating an installation about installation.

“Working with architects is like herding cats,” Willette joked, before describing the fundamental aim of the installation, which was to incorporate the general public, not only physically, but intellectually. Instead of creating a highly abstracted terrain, first-time curator Willette strove to make the exhibit as accessible to passerby as it would be to gallery veterans.

Willette worked on precisely how to mount the exhibitio...

Bigger than a Breadbox winner "The Pulp Canopy" will be showcased at Boston Society of Architects in June

2015-05-14T20:27:00-04:00

Khôra exhibition curators Robert Trumbour and Aaron Willette organized the Bigger than a Breadbox, Smaller than a Building competition as a means to explore the medium of installation in the architectural realm, specifically the medium's increasing appeal among emerging architects and designers due to its dual spatial-artistic qualities.

For the competition, entrants had to further develop a previous proposal into a new site-specific installation for the Boston Society of Architects gallery lobby. Now that the winning submissions have been chosen, they will be realized in preparation for the "Bigger than a Breadbox" exhibition, opening on June 17.

The top-winning proposal, "The Pulp Canopy", by Katie Donahue and Mason Limke of MYKA investigates the architectural applications of cellulose fiber (paper pulp), which is considered to be the "most abundant raw material on the planet". Originating from its earlier form as The Pulp Wall, The Pulp Canopy consists of discarded paper products t...

Need another idea for the Bigger than a Breadbox competition? Check out "La Cabane" by Julien Franc Wahlgreen

2015-02-14T12:00:00-05:00

Inspired by the vintage French Citroën Type H cargo van, "La Cabane" designed by independent creative director Julien Franc Wahlgreen functions as a room within a room that can enhance the increasingly common working-from-home experience. Plus, the structure's beach shack or quaint treehouse resemblance creates a fairly inviting environment to get in the zone.

Built in a Copenhagen duplex apartment, La Cabane (which translates to "hut" or "shack" in English) can be placed at the top of a staircase so the user can walk right into their workspace. Constructed by cabinet maker Gustav Sandegård, La Cabane's wooden flaps can be opened widely to create an extra 2.4 square meters of workspace, letting in natural light and providing enough wiggle room to comfortably house one person.

According to Wahlgreen, opening and closing the flaps becomes a daily ritual that can help the user mentally switch from "work mode" to "family life"/non-work mode. La Cabane's pared down plywood exterior looks l...

Get inspired for the Bigger Than A Breadbox competition with Zimoun's "250 prepared ac-motors, 325 kg roof laths, 1.8 km rope"

2015-02-13T19:44:00-05:00

There’s something strangely social about Zimoun's hypnotizing installation, referred to by its list of materials: 250 prepared ac-motors, 325 kg roof laths, 1.8 km rope. Currently on view at Knockdown Center NYC, the laths wiggle and bounce on a pre-programmed sequence, imitating an ambiance of a group gathering, with complementary gesticulations and conversations held at a not quite intelligible but still audible level.

Zimoun : 250 prepared ac-motors, 325 kg roof laths, 1.8 km rope, 2015 from ZIMOUN on Vimeo.

The installation is one of the Swiss artist’s three concurrent exhibitions in New York, collectively referred to as [KE]3 , each with their own structured system put into motion. This “sonic architecture”, as described by Zimoun, “signifies a space of entrance, but also a sound composition that functions more like an organism, something that is not changing into something else over time, but rather is full of variations in its details, and potent in its sonic possibilities. It’...

The "Bigger than a Breadbox" competition, exploring the medium of installation, nears its final deadline - Last chance to submit your proposals!

2015-02-12T15:54:00-05:00

Just a few days left to submit your ideas to the Bigger than a Breadbox, Smaller than a Building competition! Entries need to be received by Sunday, February 15, 2015 via the competition website btabb.archinect.com.

Khôra exhibition curators Robert Trumbour and Aaron Willette are the organizers behind this call for submissions, hoping for an exploration of the medium of installation design within the architectural realm and its duality of spatial-artistic traits.

The winning entry will be realized in the lobby at the Boston Society of Architects' BSA Space during the fittingly titled gallery exhibition Bigger than a Bread Box, Smaller than a Building, June 17 – October 4, 2015.

Some more details from the brief:

"From June 17th – October 4th of 2015 the Boston Society of Architects' BSA Space gallery will host 'Bigger than a Bread Box, Smaller than a Building,' a gallery exhibition that will examine the appropriation of installation in contemporary architectural practice. While in no way...

Need some inspiration to submit to the "Bigger Than A Breadbox" competition? Take a peek at Oyler Wu Collaborative's "The Cube"

2015-02-12T15:11:00-05:00

We caught a glimpse behind the curtain of Oyler Wu Collaborative’s hand-over-hand process in Anthony Morey’s latest piece, where the principal’s meticulous and dogged drawing exercises helped push the firm’s formal development. Taking a look back at one of their earlier pavilions, “The Cube”, initially built for the 2013 Beijing Biennale, helps draw the contingency from line drawing to taught steel.

As Justine Testado previously described in her introduction to “The Cube”, the sculpture/pavilion “transforms a solid idea into an abstract piece”, complicating the supposedly concrete notion of an ideal form, the perfect cube. The pavilion is a clear elaboration on previous work, such as their Taipei Sales Center or the Stormcloud pavilion at SCI-Arc, where solid volumes are stretched and torn by lines and suspensions, testing the spatial limits of what they consider “pure” forms. OWC has also designed two other pavilions at SCI-Arc, including Netscape and Centerstage, which fit clearly ...

Ep. 13 Archinect Sessions "Elizabeth Timme Gives No F*cks"

2015-01-22T09:36:00-05:00

At first we thought we could cram all of this week's amazing podcast content in under one hour. That dream was not to be, but we decided to give no f*cks, in honor of our guest Elizabeth Timme. The tenacious and game-changing Timme spoke with Donna and Amelia (with the appropriate amount of f*cks) about her work with LA Más, a non-profit design studio aimed at social justice issues in Los Angeles.

In other matters of justice, Paul sat down with Archinect Sessions's legal correspondent, Brian Newman, about a recent lawsuit against SOM that went all the way up to California's Supreme Court, and the far-reaching implications for architects.

We also talk with Aaron Willette about the Bigger Than A Breadbox / Smaller Than A Building competition, aimed at revitalizing the pavilion's role in architectural research (deadline is February 15!). Willette runs the FABLab at Taubman, and is a long-time Archinector.

Finally, we let out a collective sad sigh for Architecture for Humanity's closure.

An...

The "Bigger than a Breadbox" competition is accepting proposals!

2014-12-23T14:57:00-05:00

Bigger than a Breadbox is a current open international competition that examines the role of installation design and its hybrid artistic-spatial qualities that have made it an increasingly popular investigative medium in contemporary architecture practice.

Recently launched by organizers and Khôra exhibition curators Robert Trumbour and Aaron Willette, participants will explore the use of installation design specifically through the lens of the design-research process. Participants will be required to submit the following:

"A past built installation project that used the medium to engage a topic (disciplinary or not) external to the installation itself."
"A proposed installation for the Boston Society of Architects' BSA Space lobby at 290 Congress Street that builds upon the work done in the first project." The 290 Congress Street lobby proposals should be presented as a continued deeper exploration of the past built installation, and not simply be a re-applied concept.

An overall idea ...